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OAKLAND (CBS SF) — The U.S. Coast Guard, National Park Service and East Bay Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals teamed up to remind people that while dogs almost always survive being swept out to sea, their owners usually don’t.

The message at East Bay SPCA headquarters in Oakland Friday came less than a week after Northern California saw another fatality involving a person at the beach with their dog.

In that incident, a woman was walking along a beach at Shelter Cove in Humboldt County with her dog and boyfriend when a powerful wave dragged her into the ocean.

The woman was knocked down by what is known as a “sneaker wave,” or a large, powerful wave that catches people off-guard when they’re not paying attention, U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Pamela Boehland said Friday.

That incident was the fourth fatality since November involving people at Northern California beaches with their dogs, Boehland said.

While winter is always a dangerous time for sneaker waves at California beaches, Coast Guard officials said this year has been especially deadly.